The non-binding agreement establishes a framework for Woodside and PEMEX to evaluate future exploration and production opportunities in Mexico’s deepwater Gulf while the forecast $7.2 billion Trion capital program advances toward first oil.
Published by Allstream Insiders
Allstream Insiders Summary
Woodside Energy and Petróleos Mexicanos have signed a non-binding memorandum of understanding to evaluate potential future exploration and hydrocarbon-development opportunities in the deep waters of the Gulf of Mexico. The agreement also provides for the exchange of technical knowledge, operating experience and oil-and-gas industry practices.
The memorandum expands the companies’ framework for cooperation but does not authorize a specific exploration program, development project or capital commitment. PEMEX said the parties may jointly analyze opportunities and, if they later agree to proceed, develop or execute integrated exploration and production projects.
The relationship is anchored by the Trion Oil Project, an ultra-deepwater development operated by Woodside approximately 180 kilometers off Mexico’s coast with forecast capital investment of $7.2 billion. Woodside reported Trion was 64% complete as of June 30, 2026, with first oil targeted for 2028.
What does the Woodside-PEMEX memorandum cover?
The memorandum establishes a technical and strategic cooperation framework focused on exploration and production. Woodside said it will allow the companies to analyze potential future opportunities for hydrocarbon exploration and extraction in Mexico’s deepwater Gulf.
PEMEX described the agreement as covering:
- The exchange of technical knowledge, experience and industry practices
- Joint identification and evaluation of exploration and extraction opportunities
- Analysis of potential integrated hydrocarbon exploration and production projects
- Possible joint development or execution if the parties subsequently select and approve specific opportunities
The agreement was signed in Mexico City by Woodside Chief Executive Officer Liz Westcott and PEMEX Chief Executive Officer Juan Carlos Carpio Fragoso.
| Agreement detail | Company-reported information |
|---|---|
| Parties | Woodside Energy and Petróleos Mexicanos |
| Agreement type | Non-binding memorandum of understanding |
| Geographic focus | Deepwater areas of the Gulf of Mexico under Mexico’s jurisdiction |
| Primary purpose | Evaluate potential exploration and hydrocarbon-extraction opportunities and exchange technical knowledge |
| Existing joint project | Trion Oil Project |
| Current commitment | Cooperation and evaluation framework; no specific new development sanctioned |
Trion provides the foundation for the expanded relationship
Woodside and PEMEX are already jointly developing Trion, which Woodside describes as Mexico’s first ultra-deepwater oil development. The field is in the Perdido Fold Belt approximately 30 kilometers south of the U.S.-Mexico maritime boundary and in roughly 2,500 meters of water.
Woodside operates Trion with a 60% participating interest. PEMEX holds the remaining 40%. Woodside announced its final investment decision on the development in 2023 and forecasts total capital expenditures of approximately $7.2 billion. Woodside’s 2023 disclosure said the forecast includes all 24 wells but excludes the forecast lease amount for the floating storage and offloading vessel.
The planned production system includes:
- Twenty-four subsea wells developed in phases
- The Tlaloc semi-submersible floating production unit, with nameplate capacity of approximately 100,000 barrels per day
- The Chalchi floating storage and offloading vessel, designed to store approximately 950,000 barrels
- Associated subsea infrastructure and export systems
Woodside launched the drilling campaign in March 2026 using Transocean’s Deepwater Thalassa drillship. The company said the project remained on its approved schedule and reported 64% completion at the end of the first half of 2026. First oil remains a company target for 2028.
What the memorandum changes—and what it does not
The memorandum broadens the companies’ ability to study opportunities beyond their existing Trion work, but it does not identify a new field, exploration block or development concept. Any future project would require additional technical evaluation, commercial arrangements, approvals and project-specific agreements before it could move into execution.
The agreement therefore represents an early strategic step rather than a construction authorization or procurement event. It may allow the companies to apply knowledge gained through Trion to future deepwater evaluations, but the memorandum does not establish that another project will proceed.
Why the agreement matters to the offshore supply chain
Trion gives Woodside and PEMEX an active technical, contracting and operating foundation for ultra-deepwater development in Mexico. Its current execution program spans offshore drilling, subsea production equipment, a floating production unit, floating storage, export systems and logistics.
If the companies later identify and sanction additional deepwater opportunities, experience and technical information developed through Trion could help inform how those prospects are evaluated. However, the memorandum itself does not create confirmed bid packages, supplier opportunities or contractor awards.
Allstream will distinguish any future study, exploration commitment or sanctioned development from this preliminary framework as the companies release project-specific information. For now, Trion remains the only named joint development connected to the announcement, while the broader cooperation remains at the evaluation stage.
Woodside and PEMEX position Trion as a platform for future cooperation
The September 2026 memorandum signals that both companies are interested in extending their technical relationship beyond delivery of the Trion project. It creates a mechanism to exchange knowledge and review future possibilities without committing either party to a particular development.
The next meaningful indicators will be the identification of specific acreage or prospects, formal exploration commitments, study awards or project approvals. Until then, the agreement should be viewed as a non-binding framework built around an established partnership—not as a newly sanctioned offshore project.
